Echo Alternators

Echo Alternators

by Tom La Farge

Echo Alternators takes an in-depth look at the methods of homophonic composition: the sounds of language freed from their original sense and recycled into new meaning.

These techniques have often been used in literary composition, and their importance to the work of Raymond Roussel, the patron saint of surrealists and of the Oulipo, is fully discussed. Other methods come from Jonathan Swift’s “Trifles” and from Louis and Celia Zukofsky’s homophonic translation of Catullus. Still others share some playful pleasures, such as “Anguish Languish,” “Poetry for Dogs,” and the rebus.

Here’s the rebus translation of “Table of Contents”:

Echo Alternators is the third pamphlet in the series 13 Writhing Machines, a manual of constrained writing practices designed to liberate writers from stale habits and drive into new areas of expression. Being game-like, they are also highly useful tools in a writing classroom. The first two pamphlets, Administrative Assemblages and Homomorphic Converters, are also available from our webstore.